BOAT operators in the Pomeroon river are calling on both the Maritime Division of the Ministry of Transport and Hydraulics (MARAD) and the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] to look into the careless dumping of plastic bags into the Pomeroon river.Reports are that plastic bags pose grave danger to operators of outboard engines, and can cause serious accidents and concomitant loss of innocent lives.

One farmer who drives his own outboard engine said the plastic bags float just under the surface of the water and cannot be detected by operators driving in the river. These bags, he said, can easily become entangled with the spinning propellers of the engine, and the resultant sudden impact can cause boats to flip over. The farmer said hundreds of boats, some powered by big outboard engines supplying from 150 to 200hp, use the Pomeroon river every day.

Some business owners and vendors at Charity reportedly dump garbage, which includes plastic bags, bottles and disposable cups, into the Pomeroon river, forgetting that it is also a port of entry and connects to the Atlantic Ocean.
(Rajendra Prabhulall in Essequibo).